Addressing Challenges of Economic Evaluation in Precision Medicine Using Dynamic Simulation Modeling

. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2021 May 1.

Published in final edited form as: Value Health. 2020 Mar 26;23(5):566–573. doi: 10.1016/j.jval.2020.01.016

Discrete event simulation (DES)	Agent-based model
DES is a simulation modeling method used to represent processes at an individual level where individuals may be subject to events, whether they be decisions or occurrences over time. DES captures individual-level heterogeneity and is used to characterize and analyze queuing processes and networks of queues where there is an emphasis on the utilization of resources.	ABM is a simulation modeling method used to represent individual objects called “agents” and describe their local behavior with local rules. Agents are social and interact with others and their environment, and they may learn and adapt themselves on the basis of experience. ABM is useful to discover patterns of emergence in dynamic and adaptive systems by using deductive and inductive reasoning.

Discrete event simulation (DES)

Agent-based model

DES is a simulation modeling method used to represent processes at an individual level where individuals may be subject to events, whether they be decisions or occurrences over time. DES captures individual-level heterogeneity and is used to characterize and analyze queuing processes and networks of queues where there is an emphasis on the utilization of resources.

ABM is a simulation modeling method used to represent individual objects called “agents” and describe their local behavior with local rules. Agents are social and interact with others and their environment, and they may learn and adapt themselves on the basis of experience. ABM is useful to discover patterns of emergence in dynamic and adaptive systems by using deductive and inductive reasoning.